Lift Off: Working at winning

The atmosphere in the Wakadoo Café puppet world is bright, chaotic and a bit wacky. The Wakadoo characters are one dimensional, with clearly defined and set personalities, in contrast to the more complex human characters in Lift Off. This fits the simple relationship issues and strong moral messages of their stories.

Lift Off synopsis

This is Part A of the episode, That’s Not Fair, following the Lift Off format that mixes live action, animation, puppetry, music, documentary and fantasy. The main storyline is about the Lift Off kids, interspersed with the other elements.

Nipper (Paul Cheyne) wants to play soccer with the other kids but he is teased and called a weed. Though miserable, Nipper persists and, when finally asked to join the team, he kicks a goal.

Lift Off curator's notes

In this episode of Lift Off, the theme of fairness is explored in some interesting ways. Each segment works in its own right but also as a part of the whole.

Lift Off's aim was to be open and imaginative in exploring the themes of each episode, to challenge, intrigue and encourage children to think for themselves and to make connections. Two of these clips – the Lift Off opening sequence including the Backsaks performing the episode theme song, Its not fair, and the animated feature story, Hunting the not fair are directly related to the theme of fairness. However, other segments are not always as predictably thematic. For instance, while the Wakadoo café puppets story, Born Loser, is ostensibly about winning and losing, and not 'fairness’, the focus is more on the sub theme of the 'power of the mind’. This sub theme is also strongly picked up in clip 3, 'Hunting the not fair’.

That’s Not Fair – Part A first aired on the ABC at 2.00 pm on Friday 29 May 1992. Its first screening in the 4.30 pm timeslot on the ABC was Tuesday 7 July 1992.

Notes by Annemaree O'Brien